A late Chris Froome attack was quelled by the small lead pack, before Alberto Contador made a move of his own to hit the front with a kilometre remaining.

But the twice Tour de France winner was overtaken by the fast-finishing Van Garderen as the American raced to victory.

"It was very cold," said Van Garderen. "Froome and Contador both attacked and it seemed like everybody was sitting and looking at each other and I made a move and nobody followed me.

"It got steep in the last two kilometres so if you made a move before that and you're on the flat it's not so smart. I let the guys do a couple of little attacks first so they could wear each other out and then I made my move."

Joaquim Rodriguez finished in fourth to retain his overall lead of four seconds over Contador.